Tuesday, June 26, 2012

Amazon: What happens when the things we own become more important than the people we love?

Trish isn't perfect. She's divorced and raising two kids—so of course her house isn't pristine. But she's got all the important things right and she's convinced herself that she has it all under control. That is, until the day her youngest son gets hurt and Child Protective Services comes calling. It's at that moment when Trish is forced to consider the one thing she's always hoped wasn't true: that she's living out her mother's life as a compulsive hoarder.

The last person Trish ever wanted to turn to for help is her sister, Mary—meticulous, perfect Mary, whose house is always spotless . . . and who moved away from their mother to live somewhere else, just like Trish's oldest child has. But now, working together to get Trish's disaster of a home into livable shape, two very different sisters are about to uncover more than just piles of junk, as years of secrets, resentments, obsessions, and pain are finally brought into the light.

Kritters Thoughts: A heartwrenching look at a disease that has become coming up more and more through tv shows and the media - hoarding. The reader immediately meets Trish a hoarder who has CPS on her front door due to an accident in her home with her youngest son. Soon after we meet her sister Mary, who has the exact opposite problem an OCD cleanliness thing. Without giving up too much plot, there are reasons why each sister has their issues that are very deep and painful; they must come to terms with their past in order to start living in the present and planning a future.

As always, I love a story that has two narrators because I feel like you get an even fuller picture of the story through each of their points of view. The one minor thing that kept giving me troubles was the switch between the sisters in the narration and the chapters not being labeled and starting out with I and not knowing exactly who was taking center stage. Call me Miss Obvious, but I like things labeled, so I can quickly find out who is moving the story.

A book that I would recommend to any pair of sisters to understand how each sister comes out of a childhood affected in a different way. I am a new fan of Kristina Riggle and will definitely be checking out her previous books and will be watching out for her in the future.

Rating: absolutely loved it and want a sequel

Disclosure of Material Connection: I received one copy of this book free of charge from TLC Book Tours. I was not required to write a positive review in exchange for receipt of the book; rather, the opinions expressed in this review are my own.